Pressure
by The Snowflake Queen
Summary: (X-Men: Evolution w/ OC) The discovery of a new mutant with powers unlike any they've encountered possesses the key to the salvation or annihilation of all mutants but despite her control, is she powerful enough to withstand the emotions and experiences she'll encounter in her new life? Contains scenes of descriptive violence or sexual content. Reader discretion is advised.
1. Vision

It was a rather warm winter in Vologda, Russia considering it was December. It had snowed seven inches the previous night so the temperature was five degrees Celsius. The snow was to be expected though the temperature was higher than any of its residents could have imagined. Thick fur coats and thick-soled boots were the standard fashion accessories, whether it was day or night. Dark gray clouds covered the sky and prevented the sun's rays from shining through but its warmth could still be faintly felt.

A young fair skinned woman gazed through the glass window that overlooked the street below her, exhaling a soft sigh before pulling her white fur coat tighter around herself. She turned around abruptly at the sound of a startled gasp, her long auburn hair brushing against the small of her back whilst the curls seemed to fold into themselves more. Her piercing emerald eyes locked on to the small child who stood frozen behind her. Her small arms were limp at her sides and head tilted back. Her eyes had rolled back into her head and her small mouth was open. It was as if she were witnessing some horror that was visible only to her but the woman knew better. She waited patiently with arms folded across her chest. Two minutes later the child inhaled a sharp breath before blinking several times. Her dark brown eyes met the woman's emerald ones before tears clouded her vision.

She threw her arms out towards the woman, embracing her as tightly as she could manage. The woman began to gently run her fingers through the child's dark blonde hair to comfort her. The child sniffled and buried her face more against the woman's stomach. The woman gently pried the child from herself and knelt down to meet her gaze, eye to eye. Her left hand gently wiped her tears away before she gave her the kind of smile a mother would give her frightened child. Her voice came out very soft, barely above a whisper, which partially hid her Russian accent in her English.

"Klara, tell me, what did you see?" The woman inquired before tucking a loose strand of Klara's hair behind her ear.

"Svetlana! They're coming for you! They're coming to get you!" The child shrieked as fresh tears brimmed her eyes.

"Who is coming for me? Who are they? Tell me what you saw, Klara."

Klara sucked in a deep breath and held it before slowly exhaling it. She tugged her coat tighter around her tiny body and cast her gaze to the floor. Her dark brown eyes focused on her boots as she tried to sort it out. Svetlana was used to Klara's "gift", it was a rather unique ability that allowed her to see visions of the future but the length of them varied immensely. She had no control over when she witnessed them but she'd grown used to them. It was thanks to her gift that she'd met Svetlana. She'd foreseen their meeting and had gone to great lengths to ensure their paths met. Klara had grown to trust Svetlana with her life within three years of meeting each other. She slowly tilted her head up to face Svetlana, deciding that the sooner she told her about the vision, the longer they would have to alter the future.

"Two men want you to join them. One man is in a wheelchair and he will bring company. The other man wears a helmet and cape but he will send a woman to speak to you. I don't know what they want but they will be here for you within five hours, maybe sooner. They want to take you with them."

"Is that all you were able to see, Klara?"

Klara nodded and a frown creased Svetlana's forehead. She was sure they'd come for her soon. She placed her hands on her cheeks and smiled at her, though her emerald eyes showed sorrow. Klara sniffled as she could already tell what was going to happen. She started shaking her head and Svetlana's smile faltered before she managed to whisper to her in an attempt to comfort her.

"Klara… You know I have to do this. I don't want to but it's necessary."

"But I don't want to forget you! I want to keep my memories! And I don't want you to go away!" Klara shrieked and stared at Svetlana with sorrowful yet hopeful dark brown eyes, as if silently pleading her to find another solution.

"Klara, if they're coming after me, I'm sure they will bring a telepath to try to subdue me or gather information about me. Even if you don't want to tell them about me, they'll find out. They'll read your mind and find out everything. I can't let that happen for either of our sakes. You understand that, don't you, Klara?" Svetlana whispered as she stroke her dark blonde hair, wishing she could do something to help her.

"I know but… I'll miss you… Even if I don't remember you… I promise I'll miss you…" Klara choked out and sniffled more, wiping her eyes with the back of her sleeve as she tried to show Svetlana she was strong enough to face what was to come.

"I know, darling, I know. I'll miss you too, Klara." She whispered as she met her gaze, feeling proud of her for putting her best "big girl" face as Klara called it.

Svetlana's lips curled into a warm smile before she kissed the young girl's forehead. She gently caressed his cheeks as she hummed a lullaby to her to calm her down. She wanted Klara to relax before she proceeded with altering her memories. Klara relaxed but a minute later, her body tensed and her jaw locked. Svetlana hummed louder now as she worked on deleting herself from Klara's memories. Every single moment they had spent together whizzed by in a flurry of color flooded with emotions. She could feel only happiness, happiness Klara had felt when she spent time with Svetlana. She'd grown to see her as a mother figure, something that made tears of her own well up in her eyes.

She could see the brief moment when they met, Klara smiling up brightly at the beautiful stranger and offering to aid her with anything if she could provide her with food and shelter. She saw herself through Klara's eyes, an angel amidst chaos that radiated warmth and protection. She saw her greatest fears, witnessing scenarios of the possible deaths of people, even Svetlana's own death scenarios. She could see how nothing else mattered so long as she could spend time with Svetlana, her mother figure and guardian. Every memory Klara treasured was wiped out in an instant, rewritten so Svetlana was never a part of any of them. Once she was done, she left in a suggestion that she'd leave their home and take shelter in the streets for a week before returning home. The child went limp and collapsed into Svetlana, who scooped her up with ease and walked to the bedroom with her.

She took the stairs one at a time so Klara wouldn't be disturbed. She knew she'd be unconscious for several hours, a side effect of having her memory rewritten. She reached Klara's bedroom and stepped inside, laying her down and slowly pulling the thick comforter and blankets over her. She ensured she was wrapped in tightly in the warmth her bed provided. She kissed her forehead one last time before she walked out of the room, gently closing the door behind herself. She walked into her own room and grabbed a violet suitcase from her closet and set it up on her bed, opening it up and preparing to gather her things.

It had been a while since she'd traveled but she knew what she needed without even looking for it. She pulled two pair of black jeans, one pair of dark wash jeans and four pairs of light blue jeans from her bottom drawer. She walked into the closet and grabbed a gray pullover off a hanger then wrestled a purple zip up hoodie from its hanger. She walked over to the suitcase and folded the clothes she'd gathered so far and placed them neatly into it. She walked back to her closet and tugged four black long sleeved shirts from their hangers then two gray t-shirts. She threw them over her head onto her bed and picked up her only pair of sneakers. She threw them on to the bed as well then walked out of the closet, quietly shutting the door. She sauntered over to her dresser again and yanked seven black bras and panties.

"Hmmm… I thought I'd upgraded from black a while ago." Svetlana mused to herself before she resumed folding and packing her clothes into the suitcase.

She exhaled a soft sigh and checked the clock on the opposite wall. She'd counted that it had been five minutes but the clock stated it was seven minutes. She'd grown slow in packing and that wasn't good. She rushed to her nightstand and yanked out the secret compartment. She pulled out five different passports and grabbed one that claimed she was Russian. She tucked that one into the inner pocket of her fur coat and hid the rest in her suitcase. She then grabbed her silver purse from under the bed and shook it to feel its weight. There was enough cash there for her to be well off for a year, more or less. She decided she'd have to be careful with her money until she could make it to one of her havens. She sat on the edge of the bed and began to buckle in her boots, adjusting her thermal jeans to fit in nicely behind the leather boots. She then stood up and grabbed her suitcase, leaving her room in quick strides and bounding down the stairs three at a time.

She reached the last step and turned back, gazing up in the direction of Klara's room and feeling guilt bubbling inside her chest. She was abandoning a young mutant girl who had come to see her as a mother simply because she feared being caught. She knew the world was a cruel place that tortured anything it didn't understand but Klara was too young to see that. She knew Klara would be fine, she'd lived in the streets of Russia for the entirety of the life she could recall. Svetlana inhaled a sharp breath and rushed to the door, swinging it open, only to be greeted with a cold wind that caressed her fair skin. She closed the door quickly but quietly then began to make her walk due east to catch a ride to the airport.

It had taken no longer than five minutes of walking before a driver pulled up to her side and offered her a ride. She had thanked him and entered the green vehicle, setting her suitcase on her lap and relaxing as the warm heat blew against her face. The man had tried striking conversation but she'd offered to pay him double if he ceased. She wanted to be alone with her thoughts. She sensed a force trying to rush her and her brows creased slightly as she drove the force away. The barrier in her mind was always active, blocking any psychic attack upon it but she could still feel how it tried to force itself in. A few seconds of struggle was all the force could give before it vanished, letting Svetlana relax into the seat again. There was nothing more annoying than someone trying to read her mind, as if that could ever happen but the attempts were always pathetic. If they put up a challenge, she might be amused or even try to welcome it.

Seconds quickly became minutes and before she knew it, Svetlana had arrived at the airport. She had paid the driver and rushed to try to purchase a ticket immediately. She practically ran through the small crowds as she tried to keep appearances but outrun her pursuers. She managed to purchase a first class ticket on a flight that was just about to take off. Her influence was grand given the name she presented as well as the sum of cash. She boarded the plane quickly and soon found herself soaring above the sky. She felt herself smiling as the woman beside her stared at her intently. She casually turned around and extended her hand to introduce herself. The blonde haired woman accepted her hand and shook it delicately before slowly releasing it. Svetlana's lips pursed together before a small giggle escaped her lips before her hands folded on her lap.

"Hello, my name is Svetlana Alkaev. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise, Miss Alkaev. My name is Vanessa Jenkins." The blonde woman replied and her lashes fluttered once, obscuring her hazel eyes for a brief moment.

Svetlana leaned back a bit, taking in the sight of the blonde haired woman, whose hair was tightly held up in a bun and lips colored a deep blue. Her hazel eyes showed warmth but there was no such thing in "Vanessa's" heart. She was trying to pass herself off as a business executive but she was nowhere close to being that. Heck, even her fake mannerisms needed serious work and even she knew that. She reached up to toy with a loose strand of her auburn hair, twisting the end of it more so the curl became more prominent. The woman was silent, observing her as well, as if they were weighing each other's strengths and weaknesses. She couldn't take knowing so much and pretending she was a fool so Svetlana decided to take the initiative.

"Well, Miss Jenkins or should I say… Miss Darkhölme?" Svetlana whispered the last two words but she knew that the woman had heard her. She'd seen her eyes widened and brows furrow in anger at being discovered. "Maybe I should address you as… Now what was it again? Mystique?"

The woman glanced around to make sure no one was within earshot of their conversation before her eyes narrowed at her. "How do you know that?"

"Oh, don't you know? I'd assume since you were sent here to find me that you'd know what you're getting yourself into, Miss Darkhölme." Svetlana retorted as her lips curled into a mischievous little smile.

She narrowed her eyes more at Svetlana, as if such an act would make her read her mind. Svetlana knew she wasn't a telepath. She knew she could shapeshift so such an ability wouldn't help her in a battle of wits. She could almost feel her growing anger and anxiety radiating off of her like a flame. She hadn't expected this to be so fun but here she was, winning a battle without even trying. She placed her index finger to her chin thoughtfully and began to muse her knowledge aloud to see what else she could accomplish.

"Hmm… I wonder what Erik would say if he found out you failed in bringing me back? Would he strike you? I think he would. He isn't exactly tolerating of failure, remember?" Svetlana taunted and she could see the horrified expression on "Vanessa's" face.

"If you know who I am, you'd be wise to stop talking." She whispered to her through gritted teeth.

"And if I don't? What could you to me?" Svetlana snapped back, her pride too grand at the control she was feeling over this woman's psyche.

Vanessa slowly leaned in close, gripping the arm rest tightly as her jaw locked. She could see her struggling to keep her self control. Her eyes shouted she wanted to tear her to pieces but her tense muscles indicated she knew better than to disappoint Erik. Her body was visibly shaking by now as she fought to subdue her anger. Svetlana couldn't help but giggle, thoroughly amused at how easy it had been to get her temper boiling. Her giggles only added to the woman's fury and Svetlana found this boring now. If she wasn't going to fight her, she should stop her taunts and get straight to business. She flicked her auburn hair over her shoulder and propped a hand under her chin, leaning in close so their faces were inches away.

"Alright, Raven, I know Erik sent you here for me. Are you going to ask me what you're supposed to ask or sit there and glare at me the whole flight?"

She slowly leaned back and kept her glare on her, refusing to back down and seem weak. "Erik, no… Magneto wants you to join the Brotherhood."

"Now… What would be in it for me to join you?" She inquired as she thought about the possibilities.

"A chance to really test your skills. You're tired of not having a challenge, right? You want to do something with your powers? Something that'll cause big changes, right?" Raven asked as she was now the one pushing Svetlana's buttons, getting right under her skin.

Svetlana's brows furrowed and lips pursed together before she replied. "Well that may be true. How do you intend that to happen? Fight me?"

"How about fight other mutants who get in our way? Show them why you're better." She hissed the last part and it struck Svetlana's ego, fueling it in a way she couldn't have predicted.

"Okay… Now I'm listening. If I get to test my powers on some mutants, then I'm in. Just give me a new identity and place to stay. I'll do anything you need me to so long as I'm guaranteed fighting." Svetlana whispered and her mischievous smile returned. She extended her hand to "Vanessa" again, this time her emerald eyes sparkling with anticipation.

"We have a deal then. Welcome to the Brotherhood, Svetlana~" Raven cooed as she took her hand and shook it, slowly releasing it.

Svetlana smiled more before settling back into her seat and gazing out the window. She hadn't imagined she'd be meeting one of the ones who came for her so soon, let alone touch them. She's learned quite a bit and she was intrigued to find out more. This woman knew those who were coming for her and now she was prepared. She couldn't wait to face them for trying to force themselves into her mind. It was unwanted filth that would pay dearly for such an insult upon her. She caught her reflection in the window, her long auburn hair that curled at the tips and piercing emerald eyes with a small nose to keep symmetry upon her complexion. Her lips were full and seemed to always be pouting though their color was a very faint pink. She closed her eyes and leaned back, already feeling her sore muscles loosening up at the thought of confrontations to come. A challenge finally worthy of someone of her special talents.

**Author's Note**

Please leave a review if you'd like to see more. Hope you enjoyed! :D


	2. Meet and Greet

A soft sigh escaped Svetlana's turquoise lips whilst her index finger twirled a loose strand, trying to achieve maximum curl. Her emerald eyes gazed at the passing landscape and buildings from behind dark stained glass. There was the faint murmur of a voice around her, a voice she was clearly blocking out. She couldn't care less about rules or guidelines, at least not until she had to bend a few to get her way. The voice speaking was oblivious to the fact Svetlana was ignoring her but she figured as much by now.

"Vanessa" and Svetlana had arrived at Bayville about three hours ago but had to settle a few things before departing to what "Vanessa" suggested would be where they would stay. They had been off to a pretty fast pace day so far and she had managed to remain calm and collected; however, inside she was fuming and fussing over all the changes. She hadn't put up a fight when she'd taken her to purchase fourteen full sets of clothes. She hadn't complained when she'd taken her to eat at some strange burger place with very oily food. She hadn't complained when she told her she'd be living with teenage boys. She hadn't questioned how Raven, or Mystique as she stated she liked to be called when in private, had managed to settle the affairs of her new identity so quickly; however, she had put up a very serious fight for her new identity.

* * *

><p>"There is no way that is going to be my name!" Svetlana shouted as she slapped her hands down on the desk, standing up with great force. Her chair fell back with a hard "THWAMP!" and her emerald eyes seemed to glare into the soul of the pudgy man before her.<p>

"Sit. Down. Now." Raven hissed at Svetlana whilst her eyes narrowed at her.

"No! I will not accept THAT for a name!" She shouted and slammed her hands on the desk for emphasis.

"I said… SIT!" Raven hissed as she stood up and grabbed the woman's arm, giving her a hard tug.

"I will not sit down until I get a name that won't make me stick out like sore thumb!" She hollered then yanked her arm free of Raven's grasp with relative ease.

"Errrm… Should I give you ladies a moment alone to decide…?" The pudgy man peeped from behind his thick-rimmed glasses. He nervously pushed them up his nose as sweat dribbled down his temples. It was obvious that this man was no good with confrontation of any sort.

"Yes!" Svetlana shouted while Raven shouted her response as well. "No!" They turned to glare at each other and the man looked ready to have his anxiety swallow him up.

"Sir, please, would you be so kind as to give us a moment alone? Five minutes alone should be enough." Svetlana spoke softly as she flashed the pudgy man a bright pearly white smile. Her emerald eyes softened and shone more like gems. She even gave a playful shrug, almost as if to imply: "what can you do when you're in my shoes?".

"Y-yes, of course! J-just let me know when you're ready!" The man practically squeaked before he quickly excused himself from the room, shutting the door behind him with more force than Svetlana could've imagined.

Emerald eyes focused on the door as she could almost feel his nervous sweat drowning her alive instead. That little man really needed to toughen up, maybe marry a woman who was more assertive with him. He needed someone in his life to really make him a man. A venomous glare at her back made Svetlana slowly turn around and place her right palm on the desk to balance herself. She casually leaned against it and flashed Raven her best smile.

"Now, where were we again?"

The scowl on the woman's face could've easily formed a crater on her forehead if it was any more intense. "You were being childish about your new identity." She hissed through gritted teeth, obviously trying to keep her temper in check but not doing very well with that.

"Ah… Right." Svetlana mused thoughtfully as she pursed her lips together and brought her left index finger to tap her chin. "I'm still not going to accept that name." She stated flatly and narrowed her eyes at her.

"Now, what exactly is wrong with Shannon Baker?" Raven asked while she rolled her eyes and exhaled a heavy breath.

"Do I look like I could pass for Miss Baker? Have you seen me?!" Svetlana demanded as she gestured to her slender yet curvaceous figure. "That name is going to make everyone think I'm going to bring cookies every time I see them. You might as well add "Hey, look at me world, I'm totally faking my identity!" on to that passport!" She huffed before throwing her arms up in the air dramatically and turning her back to the woman.

"Am I to assume you can think of something better, Miss Svetlana Alkaev?" Raven demanded as she made physical air quotes with her fingers around Svetlana's name. This was meant to taunt her but earned a different response from Svetlana.

A toss of her auburn hair behind her shoulders was all Svetlana needed to do to calm herself down before responding. "That name screams that I'm Russian. My accent adds on to that. Your name screams that I'm obviously faking it. There is no way you can pass me off as American." She stated and turned to look at her over her shoulders, a smile threatening to break free.

"Have you heard yourself talking at all?! Your accent is all over your English!" Raven retorted and pointed an accusing finger at the Russian mutant.

Mystique had definitely crossed the line by trying to bash on her accent now that she'd finally accepted that she was wrong. Svetlana inhaled a sharp intake of breath and spun on her heels, coming face to face with Mystique. Her emerald eyes were a deep green, their lively luster dulled by her seething at Mystique's bashing of her heritage. Her shoulders were tense and jaw set tight, indications of rage struggling to be set free. Svetlana had always exercised control over her emotions, careful to not seem too kind or cruel so her intentions were not questioned. She wasn't one to openly display anger because she believed it didn't suit a woman's virtue. There were few things in life that could really test her self-control; however, Mystique had accidentally stumbled on number one right now. Her face was inches away from the woman's, her index finger angrily poking her chest with every word that left her turquoise lips.

"Listen here, Mystique, I will not tolerate you trying to attack my heritage or anything associated with it. Yes, I am Russian and I do have my accent, which I happen to be very proud of, understand? I can hide my accent but I bet you didn't even think of that, did you?!" She hissed through gritted teeth before giving her a shove that nearly sent her tumbling down. She stepped back and crossed her arms over her chest. "Now, we are going to go with the name that I choose or you can forget about using me." She whispered threateningly as her lips formed a grim line, showing she wasn't putting up with any negotiations.

Mystique caught herself using her chair and the desk for support, much to Svetlana's dismay. The woman quickly straightened herself out and crossed her arms over her chest, trying to seem like she actually had a chance of getting her way. Her eyebrows creased together and she seemed to be resisting the urge to bite her lower lip. Svetlana knew she was considering the situation in her mind, weighing whether a fake name would be worth losing a mutant over. Erik definitely wouldn't accept that as reason to lose a pawn. Besides, how could she explain herself to him? Their plans for her hadn't even begun. If she lost the mutant now, she would surely be kissing her life goodbye. She slowly uncrossed her arms and met Svetlana's gaze.

"Very well… What name do you want to go by?" She asked quietly, like a child finally surrendering to his given bedtime.

"Gabrielle Beauchene." Svetlana stated softly and relaxed more as the name escaped her lips, her Russian accent now replaced with a French one. She caught the look on Mystique's face and immediately pointed a finger at her. "Don't you dare say a word about it! It was my grandmother's maiden name and I'll be damned if I let you bash on it!"

Not a single sound was uttered by Mystique. She simply plopped down into her chair and sat back, which Svetlana took as a cue to her victory. She walked to the door and quietly opened it, poking her head out to call sweetly to the pudgy man. He waltzed into the room a little less nervous and finished the paperwork. Svetlana smiled innocently when her picture was taken and made small talk with the man for the remainder of their stay in his office. Mystique never spoke another word, simply nodded and handed over a stack of cash. They'd quietly left once everything was settled and were picked up by a black limousine. Svetlana practically radiated sunshine, feeling quite proud of herself for getting her way once again, just like always.

* * *

><p>"Are you even listening to me, Svetlana?!" Mystique shouted and slapped her hand down on the arm rest.<p>

"Nope." Svetlana, who was now going by Gabrielle, answered by putting an extra "pop!" sound to the "p". She glanced down at her new passport, reading over her new name for the hundredth time. "And it's Gabrielle Beauchene now, remember? You should probably start calling me that if that's what I'm going to go by while I'm here in America. It would really mess up your plans if my real identity was leaked." She half mumbled as she closed her passport, tucking it into her silver purse and zipping it close.

"Whatever. Now, as I was saying, you'll be staying with a few boys. They're members of the Brotherhood so that means that they're your teammates. I expect you to behave yourself."

Emerald eyes narrowed at the golden eyes of the blue woman. "Don't treat me like a child. I'm a woman. I know how to be a lady."

"You certainly argue like a child."

"And you play along." She retorted with a mischievous smile that earned a small snarl from the woman.

"Get out of the car." Mystique countered and pointed at the door, turning her head away.

Gabrielle giggled as she turned towards the window, noticing for the first time that they had stopped. She unbuckled her seatbelt and started to open her door when it gently swung open. She paused and blinked before gazing at the man who was holding the door open for her. She had forgotten they were riding a limousine with a chauffeur. She smiled then carefully stepped out, slinging her purse over one shoulder while the man unloaded her new black luggage case and her old suitcase. He set them on the ground and walked over to let Mystique out. She was feigning her "Vanessa" persona to seem normal. The man quickly drove away and Gabrielle pursed her turquoise lips together before she walked up to the boarding house with her luggage. Mystique had already walked past her and swung the door open, calling out loudly, as if she expected someone to come greet her with thousands of balloons and confetti. She fought the urge to roll her eyes at the sight as she walked up behind her, trying to silently squeeze through her to get inside.

"Oh boys~ I'm back~ I brought a new member with me~" She cooed and stepped inside, placing her hands on her hips.

"Hey, yo, Mystique's back!" A sickly boy called out from his spot on the coffee table, looking over his shoulder as if someone was standing there. He then turned back around and noticed Gabrielle stumbling through the doorway, her lips pursed together as she fought the carpet that had trapped her luggage. "And she brought a babe!" He spit into his hand and smoothed his hair back, though his hair quickly went back to how it was.

Gabrielle felt a shiver run down her spine as the boy looked at her, feeling as if he was undressing her, or at least trying to in that head of his. She set her luggage close to the door, ready to bolt out of there if her other teammates were anywhere close to being like this boy before her. There was a "SWISH!" of air before a tall silver haired boy was standing behind an old couch, leaning over it with a raised brow. He looked Gabrielle up and down slowly before he let out a whistle, causing the young Russian to cast her gaze to the floor. Somehow the whistle had flustered her but she didn't know why. It wasn't like she was timid around males but bold flirtatious moves on behalf of a male were a little new to her. A young man with dark brown hair slowly descended down the stairs and cast one look at Mystique then at Gabrielle. He arched a brow then looked at the sickly boy then the silver haired one, taking note that he wasn't the only one who noticed Mystique's company. Gabrielle nearly dove for cover when she heard earthquakes, except they weren't earthquakes, they were foosteps. Footsteps from a very large… boy? The boy, she assumed given how Mystique stated she was going to live with teenage boys, was like a walking boulder. He had no distinctive features but she knew he wasn't an inanimate object because he had a face, limbs and a voice, though she could've easily mistaken him for one. He had a blonde mohawk and looked like he could crush her to pieces with his pinky.

"Boys, I'd like you to meet Gabrielle Beauchene, the newest member to the Brotherhood." Mystique stated as she gestured to Gabrielle with her left hand.

The sickly boy was the first to speak up, unable to hold back the eagerness in his voice. "Yo, da name's Todd Tolansky but uh, you can call me Toad." He stated then laughed before ogling Gabrielle again.

The silver haired boy smacked Toad upside the head then vanished from her sight only to reappear in front of her, holding her hand. He quickly pecked the back of her hand before he introduced himself. "Pietro Maximoff." He stated and winked before vanishing from her sight again, only to reappear behind the couch, lounging against it. "You can call me Quicksilver though."

"I… Uh… I'm Fred Dukes. You can call me Fred or… Blob… Or…" The large boy mumbled before he chuckled and rubbed the back of his head. It didn't look like he knew how to act around a woman or maybe Gabrielle's piercing emerald eyes were a bit intimidating.

"Don't let these clowns make you uncomfortable, Gabrielle. They're not used to being around a woman." The brown haired boy explained, which earned a glare from Mystique. "Except for Mystique." He quickly added and walked over to her, shaking her hand. "I'm Lance Alvers. The fellas call me Avalanche." He then released her hand and took his place back by the stairs.

"It's a pleasure to meet you all. I hope my stay with you won't be an inconvenience." Gabrielle stated in the softest voice she could manage without letting her Russian accent slip through. She dipped into the best cursty she could manage with her fur coat and bulky leather boots. Her grace was lacking but her posture was present. She remained there for a few seconds before she slowly rose, gazing at them through her lashes.

"So what can ya do?" Todd asked as he cocked his head to one side, as if that could somehow help him figure out what she could do.

All eyes fell on her the moment he asked the question. She knew they'd ask that question but she'd been hoping to have more time to think of something. She wasn't going to reveal the full extent of her powers, no, that would be very foolish. She didn't trust any of them. She wasn't going to reveal herself to them unless it was necessary. She held out her right hand sheepishly, pretending to be nervous so they wouldn't catch on that she was stalling. She stared at her hand until she saw the faint violet light emitting from it. She then glanced at the boys and her sheepish smile grew.

"Ummm…My powers… They… Uh… Work better if I have a target… Would one of you mind volunteering…?" She quietly asked and they all seemed to gaze at each other in silence. It was almost as if they were daring one another to step up to the challenge.

"I'll do it!" Fred volunteered and took a step forward, proudly readjusting the straps on his overalls and tilting his head up a bit.

"Thank you, Fred. I hope this won't hurt you too much…" She whispered and slowly pulled her arm back then flung her arm forward, as if she were throwing a bowling ball. The violet light flew off her hand and formed a sphere in mid air before colliding against Fred's stomach, sending the large boy flying back against the wall.

There was a sickening "THUMP!" as Fred's back slammed into the wall and the whole house trembled, debris falling from a few cracks. Gabrielle immediately hid her face behind her palms, afraid she might've killed the boy. She peeked through her fingers when she heard unified laughter erupting from the room. She slowly lowered her hands and saw the boy laughing and pointing at Fred's dazed look. They slapped their knees and doubled over in laughter, even Mystique seemed to be fighting back the urge to laugh but a smirk tugged at the corner of her lips. Fred slowly moved out of the hole in the wall he'd created and rubbed the back of his head but he seemed perfectly fine to Gabrielle. Pietro wiped a tear from his eye and Lance couldn't help shaking his head through his laughter. Todd was on the floor laughing and holding her stomach but Gabrielle was unsure how to react. She hadn't prepared herself for such a reaction but a clap on her shoulder pulled her from her thoughts.

"I think you'll fit right in, Gabrielle, though we're going to need to give you a nickname, something like what we have. A name that sort of tells others what you're capable of doing." Lance explained but he kept one hand on her shoulder.

"Ummm…" Gabrielle mumbled softly as she tried to think of a name fitting for her that represented her powers but didn't give away too much. "Maybe… Marionette?" She whispered as she thought of the position she was in. The name only seemed fitting.

Lance didn't seem to know what it meant or he didn't care because he simply shrugged. "Alright, whatever you say, Gab-" He started to say then smiled and clapped her on the shoulder again. "Marionette." He then gestured for her to come towards the group as he made his way to them.

Gabrielle inhaled a deep breath and closed the door behind her. She finally let it settle in that she was now a member of the Brotherhood. It was all official now that she had met them and had a nickname. She glanced at the bickering males while Mystique held a hand over the phone, trying to restore order and keeping someone on hold by the looks of it. Pietro was wiping slime off his hand by using Lance's shirt, much to the latter's shock and anger. Fred was sitting off to the side but obviously trying to argue that they needed fifteen pepperoni pizzas. Todd was under Pietro's foot, trying to get up from what Gabrielle assumed was his punishment for spitting slime on Pietro. She smiled as she took in the scene, wondering just how this group of misfits could possibly amount to anything threatening but she figured that everyone changed when backed into a corner. She silently walked up the stairs with her luggage, humming a tune under her breath while the bickering over pizza and pranks waged on. She was more than ready to settle down for the day to prepare for a new day to come.

**Author's Note:**

I'm sorry if it seems like this is dragging on too long. I was trying to get it all set up before launching into some action. Will we see the X-Men? Will the Brotherhood cause trouble? Will Svetlana/Gabrielle show off what exactly it is she can do? Will she possibly explore love? Stay tuned to find out! :D [insert flailing arms of excitement here]

I also edited the characters for this since I am thinking of possible pairings such as Remy x Gabrielle, Pietro x Gabrielle, John x Gabrielle. Yay or nay to these? Let me know in the reviews! ^_^


	3. Rude Awakening

**Author's Note**

**This chapter will be strictly Brotherhood centered with a sprinkle of imagination. It will also feature the start of a romantic pairing. Apologies for a late update and hope you'll enjoy! :D**

There were murmurs all around her and goosebumps on her neck. She could feel their piercing gazes burning into her skin and their murmurs growing louder. An oversized navy blue t-shirt and black sweatpants provided no defense against the menace that threatened her slumber. She was still asleep but her mind slowly coming to, trying to slowly wake herself from slumber as delicately as she could. She didn't want to wake up too quickly because she knew her mind wouldn't handle such a shock. She knew from experience to take her time waking up, letting her senses slowly activate before she opened her eyes. If she kept to her routine, there would be no accidental violet flares going off.

She could smell sewage and cheap cologne as well as greasy food and hair gel. She could feel warm plush beneath her so she knew she was most likely laying in bed still. She knew someone was watching her because it was something she could pick up on easily, even in her sleep. Her brows furrowed as her body curled up more beneath the blanket, trying to focus on the murmurs. It took a few seconds before she could distinguish words that became voices. Voices that spoke too much but not fast enough that she would miss a beat.

"Yo, think she's waking up!"

"Shut up, Toad! Move aside! You'll scare her if she wakes up to your face hovering over her!"

"Blob! Watch it! Stop shoving!"

"Fellas, get outta my room already!"

"And leave her here with you alone? Ain't happening."

"Yeah! You might have sticky fingers, yo!"

"You're one to talk, Toad!"

"Shut up! Give her some space!"

Gabrielle grumbled softly as she started to stir, slowly stretching her legs out. Her small hands curled into fists then slowly opened up. She rolled over on to her other side, readjusting herself until she was comfortable again. She inhaled a deep breath and slowly exhaled before her lashes started to flutter. She opened her emerald eyes slowly, taking a while to adjust to the light. Her vision slowly came into focus and she realized that Todd's face was inches from hers. She released a startle screech and pushed herself back, rolling off the bed and hitting the floor with a hard "thump!" She groaned softly and rubbed her head as she looked towards the bed, seeing that her legs were over the bed and only her upper torso was on the floor. She exhaled a huff of air, internally cursing that she hadn't stuck a landing. She leaned up on her elbows just in time to see Pietro smack the back of Todd's head.

"I told you that you were gonna scare her! Now look what you've done!" He exclaimed and smacked the back of Todd's head again. He then came over to Gabrielle and extended his hand to her.

"Oh... Thank you." She whispered as she took his hand, surprised at how easily he pulled her up... or at least it started that way.

The motion was too sudden for her so she stumbled forward, bumping her nose against his chest as she was falling. His arms wrapped around her waist immediately as he stumbled a step back, quickly gaining his balance before they could fall down. She was pressed tightly against his body so she felt how easily her slender and petite frame had effortlessly nestled into his lean upper body. She wouldn't have imagined him to have this type of body. Perhaps he was an athlete of some sort, she thought. She heard a chuckle and slowly tilted her head up, emerald meeting sapphire.

"Charmed you so much you can't resist me?" Pietro asked as he cocked an eyebrow and a proud smirk spread across his lips.

"What? No, that's not it. You know I lost my balance." Gabrielle immediately replied and placed her hands on his chest, slowly pushing herself out of his embrace.

"Awww man, there goes Pietro taking my girl." Todd whined from behind them somewhere.

"Your girl? I don't think you ever had a chance, Toad." Lance stated in a matter-of-fact tone and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Specially cause you scared her outta bed." Fred stated and broke into laughter along with Lance.

The comments were unexpected for Gabrielle and she wasn't sure how to respond. Sure, Todd never even had a chance with her but it wasn't necessarily his personality that veered her away from him. His hygiene was too much for her to handle. If he maybe cleaned up and completely changed, maybe, just maybe she'd look at him as a man. She crossed her arms over her chest after she finally pried herself out of Pietro's embrace. She glanced at the boys, finally taking in their appearances this morning, though some of what she saw came as a complete shock.

Fred was wearing a blue one piece footed pajamas with little ducks on them and a matching nightcap. He looked like a very large toddler and the sight warmed Gabrielle's heart, making her think of him as a big teddybear now. Lance was wearing a maroon t-shirt with brown sweatpants, his hair disheveled and sticking up to the right. It looked like he'd been slapped incredibly hard by how his hair was perfectly aligned to a single side. Todd was wearing a long sleeved yellow and green striped shirt with very short... green sweatpants? It was hard to tell because they stopped a few inches below his knees. He looked greener than usual wearing that. That was probably the second reason he'd scared her out of bed. Then there was Pietro, his silver hair slightly sleeked back and wearing a blue t-shirt with white lining on the sleeves and neckline. His sweatpants were the same shade of blue with the words _The Speed Demon_ written on the left leg in white. After reading those words, Gabrielle broke into laughter before pointing at him.

"Nice jammies, Pietro. Write that yourself?" She asked through her fit of giggles now.

Pietro's eyes narrowed a bit and he defensively crossed his arms over his chest. "I did. So what? It's true. Can't handle the truth, get outta my room."

"Hahaha, yeah, sure. Way to— Wait, what?" She asked as she cut herself off and blinked a few times. She stared dumbly at him now, earning an eye roll from Mister Fancy Pants.

"Yeah, _MY_ room. The room _YOU_ stole from me. You slept on _MY_ bed." He complained and exhaled a heavy breath to blow the strand of hair that had flopped down from its place.

Lance took a step closer to the pair and scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, Gabrielle, you kinda took his bed and room last night. I mean, it's no big deal cause we all passed out downstairs but when he woke up and came here, he hollered about some girl in his bed. We all freaked out cause we forget 'bout you coming here last night."

Gabrielle gaped at Pietro then at the other three delinquents in turn before she became flustered, bringing her hands up to hide her face. "Oh god..." She mumbled behind her hands. Not only had she totally taken someone else's space but also been forgotten. As if either one alone wasn't bad enough. She had at least certainly made an impression on them now.

Todd tilted his head to the side slightly, mistaking her being flustered for crying. "Awww, man, don't cry. You'll make us all cry."

"Nice going, Lance." Fred stated and shoved Lance to the side using his large gut.

"Hey-! Wait!" Lance shouted as he stumbled into the wall then clenched his hand into a fist before pointing an accusing finger at Todd. "You scared the crap outta her! And you-!" He pointed at Pietro. "You whined about her sleeping here for a good minute and brought us all over her to smother her! You two should be apologizing! I explained what happened to her!"

"Everyone! Hush!" Gabrielle exclaimed and threw her arms up in the air, stepping between the heated teens who were already grabbing on to each other, ready to throw down mutant style. "Guys, come on, it's fine. I'm not crying. See?" She gestured to her face, clearly free of waterworks before she exhaled a deep breath. "Yes, I was scared because Todd was in my face soon as I woke up. Yeah, I might've taken Pietro's room and bed for the night but none of you explained the rooming thing to me. I was too tired and you guys were busy so I kind of..." She trailed off and nervously laughed as she rubbed her index finger over her cheek. "Eh..." She finished as she shrugged her shoulders, flashing an apologetic smile.

Todd stared up at Gabrielle, entranced by the smile she was giving them. It looked too heavenly to him that he couldn't tear his eyes away, even if Pietro's foot was crushing his spleen. Lance blinked a few times as he clenched and unclenched his fists, trying to control his temper. Fred stared at everyone in turn before he released Lance and Pietro. He walked away, muttering about his appetite. Pietro was scowling at Lance, his blue eyes glinting with fury at being yelled at and jealousy over not being the one to get the last word in. The air between them was suffocating so Gabrielle did one of the few things she did best: provide a distraction. With a quick flick of the wrist, she was gesturing at an alarm clock by Pietro's bed, her emerald eyes wide before she frantically pointed at the time.

"Guys! It says it's seven thirty! Is this clock right?!" She squeaked on purpose to make her distraction that more distracting.

"Seven thirty?! Oh crap! We gotta bounce! Blob!" Lance shouted before he ran out the room and into his own. He muttered curses after he slammed his door shut.

"Lance...?" She called out before Todd hopped away. "Wait, Todd, you too?"

"Sorry, gumdrop, we gots ta bounce! We gotta go ta one of 'em field trips for school! Some shmucky survival training camp thing." Todd explained before he began to bounce off the walls to go to his... whatever it was he slept, though a trashcan was probably it.

"Survival training camp...?" She muttered as she tried to process Todd's response. Her brows furrowed as she tried to figure out if it was anything like she'd been through back in Russia.

"That's right, _Little Miss I-Steal-People's-Beds-And-Stuff_!" Pietro declared in a mocking tone and stuck his tongue out at her.

"I apologized for that." She stated and crossed her arms over her chest.

"No you didn't! You just smiled and everyone ate it all up!" He declared and threw his arms up in the air dramatically.

"I did no such thing." She defended, though he was speaking the truth.

"Did too!"

"Did not!"

"Uhuh!"

"Nah uh!"

"Yea—! Yeoooooowch!" Pietro hollered before doubling over on to the floor.

Gabrielle stood over Pietro with a cheerful smile upon her lips and her emerald eyes glowing with joy. She had always hated arguments and would resolve them as quickly as time permitted and through any means that would prove effective and efficient. She wasn't above using cheap and dirty tricks to get her way for any argument but that didn't affect the fact she was a lady. She also knew that being a lady sometimes made a woman be at the mercy of a man and she wasn't too keen on that. She'd seen her argument with Pietro as that situation so she'd proceeded to deliver a swift and powerful kick to his left shin. She was barefoot but her kick still had enough force on its own that Pietro was on the floor, clutching his leg to his chest and whining. This sight brought happiness to Gabrielle because she still had powerful legs even after all this time. After a minute, she knelt down to stare at him, poking his shoulder.

"Get up, Mister Fancy Pants. You have to get ready too." She tried to pry his arms off his leg but to no avail.

"You kicked me! You kicked my shin!" He whined and rolled about on the floor to try and get away from her.

"Oh come on. Don't be such a baby." She teased and tried to keep him from rolling.

"First you steal my room. Then you steal my bed. Then you kick me! What kind of foreign exchange student are you?!" He swatted at her hands with his free hand.

"The mutant kind." She stated and pinned his free hand to his chest as she tried to pry his other hand away from his leg.

"Oh, yeah, that's your excuse." He rolled his eyes before he managed to spring on to his feet. He eyed her from head to toe, taking in her morning appearance and finding no flaws with it. He'd have to fix that before he left. "You know... You'd look so much better if..."

The glint of mischief in his eyes was all Gabrielle needed to take a step back and raise her arms up in surrender. "Now Pietro... You don't have to do this. I'll say you won. No worries. Just don't you dare—"

There was a powerful gust of wind that shoved her back a few steps. She crossed her arms before her upper body to protect against any possible frontal attacks. Her hair was whipped back with force and she closed her eyes. She knew he was running around her at full speed doing something but he was too fast to perceive. She faintly heard the hiss of a spray but couldn't pinpoint from where. The wind had suddenly stopped and Gabrielle slowly relaxed, glancing around the room. Pietro was gone and the room was as it had been. Nothing seemed different so what could he have done?

She placed a hand over her stomach and released a deep breath of relief before the stickiness settled in. She slowly glanced down and noticed there were words written all over her pajamas. Her mouth dropped open and she dashed towards the full body mirror in the corner of the room. Her lower lip quivered as she tried to think of anything to say in regards to the message Pietro had sprayed on her with white paint. It was simple but the words themselves enraged her at the possible suggestion they posed: _Pietro was here! And here! And here!_

She turned on her heel and sprinted down the hallway then down the stairs, just in time to see Todd close the door and hop away. She threw herself at the door and swung it open. She saw the Brotherhood seated on a green Jeep with Lance on the driver's seat. Pietro was riding shotgun and smirking before he made a remark to his teammates. They stared at Gabrielle then at Pietro, afraid to show any emotion towards Pietro's little prank on Gabrielle. She'd just moved in so they didn't know if perhaps her temper was as explosive as Mystique's or worse. They knew Pietro quite well by now but they weren't going to support him this time or at least not in front of a very angry looking Gabrielle. Pietro punched Lance's arm and pointed forward, obviously telling him to drive away while Todd slumped down in his seat. Fred looked everywhere except in her direction. Lance turned around and floored the gas to speed away but that didn't stop Gabrielle. She ran a few feet behind them, shaking her fist in anger and calling out to her victim.

"YOU ARE SO DEAD PIETRO! I'M GOING TO GET YOU WHEN YOU COME BACK!"

She continued shouting death threats to Pietro and chasing them by foot for about a minute before she came to a slow stop. She kicked the dirt and walked back to the house, grumbling under her breath in Russian. She stopped at the doorstep and glanced up, seeing the terrible conditions the house was in. She had the money to fix it up but she figured it would be a loss not an investment. If she was going to live her, she was going to fix this place up but not all of it. The kitchen she definitely intended to fix up. That was the heart of any home. Perhaps if she fixed it and made it what it's meant to be, the Brotherhood home would have some positive vibe. She gave herself a tour of the home and afterwards found herself crying on the foot of the steps. The place was a disaster. The conditions they lived in were beyond those of poverty. She didn't know if she, a woman who had grown up amongst riches, would be able to make a living in such conditions. There was no way she could handle this place as it was. She was going to change things here, no doubt about it. It was a great thing too that the boys were going to be gone for bit. There was going to be no one around to stop Gabrielle from turning their world upside down.


	4. Family

"And that's how a Beauchene makes a family~" Gabrielle cooed before she grinned happily, wiping sweat off her forehead with the back of her palm.

She wore dark blue overalls with a white t-shirt underneath them and black Converse high-tops. She had her auburn hair tied in a high ponytail with a loose strand hanging over the left side of her face. The curls on the tips of her hair seemed more prominent now with the hairstyle and she seemed younger as well. She seemed like a very cheerful little girl, full of smiles and radiating happiness as well as kindness. Her overalls were splattered with white paint after she'd spent most of her day painting the kitchen in the Brotherhood house. It had certainly been an eventful day for the young foreign mutant as she went about creating a nurturing environment.

* * *

><p>Money could certainly get someone anything they desired in life. Money also played a role in the happiness of a family. It was a lesson Gabrielle had learned before she could learn to speak. It was that same lesson that had guided much of her lifestyle and the very one that had aided in the tedious task she'd set out for herself. The moment she'd returned home after chasing down the boys, she'd picked up the phone and called a group of handymen. It had taken quite a bit of persuasion to get them to even agree to come to house, let alone want to do any work. Gabrielle had to hassle with them for a good ten minutes before they agreed to work for her, though not before haggling over a promising "donation". Money was no trouble at all for Gabrielle so she'd agreed to pay each of them nearly two thousand dollars in cash and nearly thirty thousand for the kitchen project.<p>

Gabrielle had given the men her vision of the kitchen with specific instructions and had promptly left to give them space. She'd gone off to purchase a trailer or a mobile living quarter as the salesman had called it. She'd made arrangements to have it transported to the boardinghouse before running off to purchase a few more clothes and shoes, feeling that she would need something that would help her blend in for her upcoming role as a high school student. It was around three in the afternoon when she returned home and the results that had awaited her were exemplary.

The entire kitchen had been remodeled. Every piece within it was new. The cabinets were redone and no longer hung off the hinges or creaked before falling apart. The sink had flowing hot and cold water. The drainage for it was no longer clogged. The microwave and refrigerator were better than brand new. The stove no longer threatened to blow up when turned on. The tiles were no longer broken or stained. The dining table had been replaced with a newer replica. The windows replaced with new ones and the back door no longer had scratches or slime. It was absolutely beautiful and spotless, even though it wasn't painted yet.

Gabrielle paid the men and quickly ushered them out of the house before running to change in her trailer. She came back out sporting her brand new dark blue overalls that she'd purchased earlier today. She'd thrown them on over a white t-shirt to contrast the dark color. Given the task she had to accomplish, she'd swapped her would be signature steel toed boots for a pair of black Converse high-tops. She'd tied her waist length auburn hair in a ponytail then plucked out a single strand so it would frame her face. She glanced at herself in the mirror of her bathroom and puckered her lips as she twirled the loose strand around her finger.

"Hmmm... Now that I think about it, purchasing this for my living quarter was a great investment but... was fixing the kitchen in the house an investment as well...? They're probably going to wreck the place when they come back..." She grumbled to her reflection before she straightened up and shook her head. "No no no! You can't think like that! This WILL be an investment. You don't have Klara's visions anymore so you have to rely on your gut instincts! Come on! Your efforts will make this place feel like home. A home where you now have a family!"

She threw a few little mock punches at her reflection to pump herself up before bursting out of the bathroom. She leapt across her trailer until she swung herself out the door and into the would've been driveway. She then marched into the home and readied the equipment she needed. She set up the paint and brushes in the living room before she started to work. She dutifully painted each cabinet before she began painting the walls, all the while humming along with songs that played on the little radio she'd bought. It wasn't as being as she'd imagined but that was probably because she danced around while painting the walls. She hummed and sang along terribly to this country's pop music. She hadn't even felt the way time flew by her while she found herself surrounded by white's vibrancy.

* * *

><p>Gabrielle was grinning at her finished work now, dropping the paint brush on to the plastic beneath her feet. It had taken all day but the kitchen was now fully restored. Now she wouldn't live in fear that the room would mutate out of garbage and filth because she was going to guard this place like a guard dog. She stretched her arms above her head before she began to gather what she'd used, wrapping it all up in plastic then carrying it off to the garage. She stored everything in a corner, too tired to organize them.<p>

"Ugh... I need a shower..." She mumbled to herself before she found herself walking into the Brotherhood's bathroom, seeing as how her trailer lacked a shower.

It took all her strength of will to not run out of there screaming. She'd closed her eyes and made it her mission to refuse to open them. She didn't want to know what the various stains were. She didn't want to know why there was dirt, mud and sand all over the floor. She didn't want to know why it reeked of urine and bodily odors. She pinched the bridge of her nose and held her breath at fifteen second intervals. She shampooed and conditioned her hair then scrubbed herself down as fast as she could manage without using her sight. She rinsed herself off and wrapped herself in her towel before bolting out of bathroom, kicking the door shut behind her. She panted for breath then trudged down the stairs.

"Come on... Breath, Gabrielle, breathe." She coached herself as she made her way into her trailed and closed the door.

She changed into a long sleeved burgundy shirt and black skinny jeans. She then rummaged around the various bags she had until she found a pair of black socks in them. She struggled to slip on her socks but easily stepped into her signature steel toed leather boots. She searched for her purse and cellphone, taking both precious items with her and running out the little door of her trailer. It took her a while before she figured out how to call for a taxi to drive her to grocery store, where she filled a shopping cart with food. She was sure it wouldn't last much if she didn't keep an eye on her teammates, especially Fred but maybe if she agreed to cook for them, there would be no problem.

After an hour of grocery shopping, Gabrielle was back at the Brotherhood home, cooking up a feast. She figured her teammates would be coming home the next day and a feast for their return was sure to get their spirits revamped. More than anything, she hoped her cooking would keep them satisfied enough to keep the kitchen unharmed and the food available. The clock struck midnight just as she turned off the stove, delighted that she had finished when the front door swung open and a familiar voice was heard.

"You fools! Had I not commanded you to leave, you would've stayed with the X-Men! Did you really think they'd be happy to have you there?!" Mystique shouted as she clenched her hands into fists. She sure seemed pissed about whatever it was that had happened but who was she yelling at?

"It's not like we don't know that!" Lance shouted, clearly defending himself and his teammates.

"Yo, Mystique, we ain't that stupid, ya know?" Todd grumbled softly, afraid to speak up in her presence.

Pietro didn't seem to care of her presence because he spoke as if she wasn't around but the rate of his speech probably played a role. "Mystique won't get off our backs! Geez! What's with that woman?"

"But we protected you." Fred stated and Gabrielle could already picture him nervously twiddling his fingers and rubbing his almost entirely bald head.

It was strange that they were back so soon. She wasn't expecting them until later today. Not to mention they were wearing different clothes. They resembled battle armor that was clearly designed to suit their individual powers but she wasn't sure. All she caught was a peek before she moved from the doorway. Gabrielle dried her hands off with the dish towel before she started serving their plates, listening to their arguments about some fight and the X-Men. It was hard to ignore them but she went about setting the table without making any sounds loud enough to give herself away. Once she was done, she silently tiptoed into the living room and stood by the doorway, arms folded over her chest and smiling at the group before addressing them in the sudden silence.

"Welcome home, guys. How was the trip?"

"Wha— Gabrielle? Where did you come from?" Lance asked as he glanced at the stairs, front door then at her. He was clearly puzzled how she'd wound up practically in their faces without being noticed.

Mystique lunged for Gabrielle in that instance, catching her by surprise. She gripped her by her throat and slammed her back against the door frame more. She leaned in close to her face and her words were like venom dripping from fangs. **"Where. Were. You."** It wasn't so much a question but a demand. Gabrielle wanted to gasp from how Mystique's grip tightened around her neck. "We had to fight Juggernaut and you where nowhere to be found!"

"G-gaaaa—!" Gabrielle choked out as she kicked her legs, trying to free herself.

"Let her go!" Pietro shouted as he clenched his hands into fists and prepared to rush in. He was held back by Lance's grip on his shoulder.

Brown eyes glared at the blue skinned female and his jaw tightened before he spoke. "Let her go, Mystique. It wasn't her fault. Let her go now. We're only going to warn you once."

Gabrielle weakly clawed at Mystique's wrists because it was all she could manage. She couldn't use her violet energy because that required her to concentrate unless she wanted to blow up her surroundings entirely. She couldn't formulate thoughts because all she could see was Mystique's life running through her mind. She was seeing so many memories, hearing voices that Mystique could recall, seeing this woman's life through her own eyes. It was moments like these that she hated the telepathic touch. A simple touch and someone's life became an open book to her. It was frightening to see what Mystique planned to do to her but all she could do was try to claw and kick herself free. It felt like an eternity had gone by before she was released.

"Tch, I'll see you all tomorrow. Do no disappoint me any further." Mystique stated before she walked out of the house, slamming the door shut behind her.

Gabrielle was wheezing, struggling to get air in her lungs while Todd cradled her head, smoothing out her hair from her face. Apparently he'd been close enough to slide right next to her when she collapsed. Her fingers desperately scratched at the carpet as she tried to breathe. Todd worriedly glanced up and Lance knelt down to squeeze one of her hands reassuringly. Pietro vanished from her line of sight then returned with a moist towel. He placed it gently on her forehead then quickly took his spot next to Fred. They both stared at the front door as if they were waiting for Mystique to march through it to take her down.

"Gabrielle, look at me." Lance murmured and squeezed her hand again. Her emerald eyes focused on him before he spoke again. "Yeah, that's it. Just breathe, okay? Take it slow. You're fine. She just applied a little too much pressure on your throat so it feels like you can't breathe but you can. Just try to calm down first, alright?"

"Yeah, jus' relax. We gotcha." Todd added as he carefully tilted her head a bit so she could breathe easier.

She managed to calm down enough to inhaled a deep breath. "Mys—"

Lance shook his head and she stopped herself. "We've never seen her do that before. She was beat pretty bad by Juggernaut before we teamed up with the X-Men to save her and Xavier. She probably thought that if we had you around, you'd have helped us take him down easier."

Gabrielle narrowed her eyes and squeezed his hand tighter, making him cry out in pain and Pietro shoot him a look. It was her way of letting him know that she didn't see any justification to almost being strangled.

"Lance ain't defendin' her. Just sayin' this was new. Never saw it coming." Todd stated and helped Gabrielle to sit up, keeping his hand on her back as she coughed.

"... lucky I don't rip her head off." Gabrielle wheezed out before coughing again. "I'm fine, I'm fine." She stated and waved her hand as she caught their worried glances in her direction.

"If she comes back, I'm taking her down. Nobody hurts the Blob's friends." Fred stated as he punched his left fist into his right palm.

"No." Gabrielle stated and the group looked at her incredulously. "We're going to pretend nothing happened. If it happens again, _I'll handle it_." She inhaled a deep breath and made an attempt to stand up.

"Whatever you say, Gabrielle, just know we're here for ya." Pietro remarked as he sped to her side, wrapping one arm around her waist and lifting her up. He hooked her arm around his neck and held her close, glancing around to see where he could lay her down.

"Pietro, wait. I'm fine. Besides, I have a surprise for you all." She stated and glanced at Pietro before pointing towards the kitchen. "Would you mind taking me there? There's something I want to show you all."

Fred immediately looked worried when she pointed at the kitchen. Maybe he thought she'd poisoned everything or had found a secret of his there. Todd picked at his earwax before he hopped behind them. Lance scrunched up his nose as he prepared himself for the stench. He begrudgingly walked behind them all. Pietro helped Gabrielle walk into the kitchen and almost dropped her as he caught the sight of the remodeled kitchen. He stepped into the center with Gabrielle to allow the others in but Gabrielle clung tightly on to the speedster, afraid he'd simply let her fall.

Lance was hesitant to touch anything but Todd hopped all over, touching everything and opening everything. They had a whole new set of cooking ware, pots, pans, dishes, cups, eating utensils and groceries. They actually had groceries! Everything was spotless and looked nothing like their former kitchen. Fred seemed like he was ready to cry at the sight of cabinets filled with canned food and the like as well as the fully stocked refrigerator. Pietro set Gabrielle down on the table, taking note of the five plates set out upon it. He arched an eyebrow in question and gestured to the room.

"I hope none of you are mad at me. I decided to take matters into my own hands. I paid to have this place remodeled and stocked it all up myself. I did the paint job for it but other than that, I had people do everything else. Of course, it wasn't cheap and it put quite a dent in my wallet as you say but I think it was worth it. What do you think?" Gabrielle asked sheepishly as she glanced at each of her teammates in turn.

"I don't remember this place bein' so nice when I moved in." Todd commended as he noticed there were no stains or bugs for him to play with.

"I don't think I've ever seen a room so white before." Lance stated as he scratched the back of his head, casually lounging by the fridge.

"Tch, no kidding." Pietro added and inspected his reflection in the fridge, liking the chrome finish of the appliance to double as a mirror for him.

"This is... everything I wanted in a kitchen and more." Fred declared with tears clouding his eyes.

Gabrielle smiled and gestured to the table. "Come on then, guys, join me in having our first home cooked meal. Curtesy of yours truly of course."

"Alright!" Fred practically charged to the table, leaving his teammates to jump out of his path.

"Chow time!" Todd shouted as he hopped into the seat across from Gabrielle, rubbing his hands together before Gabrielle smacked his hands with a wooden spoon. "**AAAAAAAAOOOOOWWWW!**" He then narrowed his eyes at her while he rubbed his injured hands. "Whatcha do that for?!"

"You are all to march to the bathroom and clean up or no supper for any of you. I want you to scrub your hands in warm water with a handful of soap. Then you're all to come back down here so we can eat. No cheating either. I'll know." She admonished and smacked the wooden spoon on the table when no one made an attempt to move.

The sound of the wooden spoon smacking the table caused Todd to be the first one of the kitchen and into the bathroom. He didn't need to feel another smack on his little hands. The only smack so far stung and caused the skin to turn a shade of red. Pietro actually walked out of the kitchen for once. He didn't use his speed because he figured if he used it while washing his hands that Gabrielle would count it as cheating and deny him his meal. Lance was a little scared of how they'd been threatened. No one had even seen her grab the spoon in the first place. It was suddenly in her hand when she smacked Toad with it. Fred was eager to comply because there was a meal in it for him if he behaved. He figured that maybe because she'd spent her money on the kitchen that she was assuming the role of a mother in the house. Fred kind of liked that idea.

Fifteen minutes later and the Brotherhood cleaned up, they were sitting with Gabrielle at the table. They fidgeted in their seats, eager to start digging in but Gabrielle wouldn't let them. That wooden spoon in her hand had become the deadliest weapon they'd encountered. She explained to them the meal, going over then in detail. She had prepared a spaghetti with green sauce, grated Parmesan cheese and weenie bits for the appetizer. The meal itself was grilled chicken breast smothered in a rosemary sauce and sprinkled with pepper. It was accompanied with mushrooms and crushed walnuts for toppings. There was mashed potatoes with gravy and steamed cauliflower and broccoli for the sides. Their glasses were filled with coca-cola with a few ice cubes floating about. Their mouths were watering as she spoke and she couldn't help but giggle. It was a certainty a sight to bear witness to. She never would've imagined that they'd be so well behaved for a meal. She set the wooden spoon down and smiled at them.

"Bon appétit, ma famille." Gabrielle stated and waved her hand over the table, giving her new family clearance to dine to their hearts' content.

**Author's Note**

This was another Brotherhood centric episode that takes place after the Survival of the Fittest episode. We don't get to see what happens when they come home so I took this as the opportunity to plug in Gabrielle and make a few changes to their home. ^_^ I wrote this with the idea to sort of give a glimpse into some of Gabrielle's values, which will play key roles in chapters to come. The days are progressing slowly for Gabrielle but worry not my readers! This upcoming episode will feature Gabrielle's encounter with the X-Men and we will get to see what she can really do~ ;3 Stay tuned!


	5. The Prince and the Pauper

It was Gabrielle's first day in Bayville High and she was terrified. She had decided to wear a salmon colored mid thigh length dress and her signature steel toed black leather boots with the very sharp silver stiletto heels. The dress had wrist length sleeves but the shoulders were left exposed. There were three gold chains that linked across the exposed skin to the other side to hold the sleeves together. She had her auburn hair tied in a bun with a stand of hair framing either side of her face. She wore small gold hoop earrings and a single gold ring on her right little finger. She had wanted to blend in with the students but she accomplished the opposite, earning several stares before she had even stepped through the doors of the place.

She'd never attended school before since she was home schooled, which meant she hadn't been sure what was appropriate to wear. She'd actually finished her studies when she was twelve and the equivalent of them transferred as high school completion. It had been tedious to handle all those school years within a span of seven years on top of other extra curricular activities she actively engaged in. She had juggled ballet, gymnastics, fencing and mixed martial arts along with her school life. It had been a handful to deal with but it was something her parents believed she would need in order to make it in life. She spoke three languages fluently and lived a very active lifestyle but she had to stick with the script. According to the records, Gabrielle Beauchene was a gymnast from France who had come to Bayville as a part of a sports foreign exchange student program. Fingers snapped beside her ear, startling her to the point she abruptly stood up and thrust her arm out, grasping the wrist of the finger snapper. She narrowed her eyes and hissed through gritted teeth.

"Don't snap your fingers at me, Mystique."

The woman's eyes narrowed behind her glasses and she yanked her arm free. "It's _Principal Darkhölme_. I've told you this five times now. Do you want me to strangle you again?" She threatened and sneered, confident that her words would silence the young mutant.

"Do it. I dare you." Gabrielle retorted as she balled her hands into fists. They began to glow violet as she started to harness the energy.

She could see the older mutant weigh her options and narrow her eyes at her. If they were to fight, it was bound to end in chaos. Mystique's abilities allowed her to alter her form but that was it. Gabrielle could harness energy and project it. She could manipulate the energy to be her grand weapon. Not to mention her telepathic touch she'd been keeping under wraps along with another power. She had more cards than her to lay on the table. This fight was won before it started and they both knew it: _Gabrielle would be victorious_. She straightened herself up and dismissed the young girl with a wave of her hand before standing by the window, overlooking the small domain she ruled. Gabrielle smirked and grabbed her black backpack, using a single shoulder strap to carry it by and exiting the office.

"Well... time to figure this out, I guess." She mumbled to herself as she stared at the slip of paper in her hands.

She took one glance at another slip of paper with a few numbers written on it. Mystique had explained it was for her locker but heaven knows what that meant. She nervously chewed on her lower lip, tasting the cherry Chapstick she'd applied to them. She glanced around, searching for someone who could assist her. A tall young man with brown hair was walking down the hallway alone, waving at a few students and giving small smiles. He wore a blue sweater over a pale yellow shirt, tan pants with a brown belt and light brown shoes. His entire outfit seemed to have been ironed before he decided to dress in the garments. He had the vibe of a natural born leader with his strong square jaw and broad shoulders. He wore red sunglasses, a little odd given the fact they were indoors but it added a sense of wonder to his persona. He would be the perfect person to guide her with this locker business so she wasted no time in walking over to him.

"Excusez-moi, monsieur!" She called out as she waved her right hand in the air, struggling to rush towards him while the floors proved difficult to run on with her boots.

The man stopped and glanced around, noticing very few students nearby now, which could only mean she was yelling at him. "Uh, yes? Can I help you?" He asked a bit softer than she would've thought his voice to sound like.

"Oui!" She stopped right in front of him and extended her hand to him. "Je m'appelle Gabrielle Beauchene. I am an exchange student from France. It's very nice to meet you."

"Oh, exchange student, huh? Well it's nice to meet you too, Gabrielle. I'm Scott Summers. Welcome to Bayville High." He stated as he shook her hand, flooding her with a few weeks of information with the simple handshake.

She had to blink a few times before she slowly retracted her hand. She then smiled and dipped into a light curtsy. "Thank you so much for the warm welcome, mister Summers."

"Oh please, call me Scott." He stated with a light chuckle.

"Very well then, Scott. Would you mind if I asked for your assistance?"

"Not at all. What can I help you with?"

"I do not understand this locker thing. In France, I never saw such a thing on campus."

"Oh, really? Wow." He scratched the back of his head and then glanced at his wristwatch. "Well, we've got a few minutes before class starts so I don't mind. Come with me, let's to find your locker and I'll show you how to open it."

Gabrielle walked beside Scott as he guided her to her locker, which he explained was down the hall. They made small chatter as he gave her the rundown of Bayville High but she paid little attention. She was processing the information she'd received from him. He was Scott Summers, leader of the X-Men and known amongst them as Cyclops. He could fire powerful blasts from his eyes like she could from her hands but he had no control over his power. His power was the reason behind his sunglasses and that he was older than her. He loved his car almost as much as he loved... **SLAM!**

"Whoa! Hey! Are you alright?" Scott asked as he knelt down in front of Gabrielle. He extended his hand to offer help.

"Ow... Yeah, I'm fine." She replied as she rubbed her forehead with left hand, taking his hand with her right. "I should've been paying attention. I got distracted with my thoughts. I didn't even see you open my locker for me."

Maybe reviewing the information gathered from the enemy right beside them wasn't a good idea. This locker door incident could have been intended or accidental. There was no way she could know now because she'd completely missed out on various key points. She had failed to realize they'd made it down the hall, that he opened her locked and instructed her in how she could do it herself and had been attacked by the door. He'd helped her up and apologized, which is when she realized it had been accidental. She'd seen the situation through his eyes. She inhaled a deep breath and saw Scott start to walk away from her.

"Sorry, Gabrielle, I gotta grab my stuff from my locker. Class starts in five. See ya around!" He called as he waved then took off.

Gabrielle waved a little as Scott ran off then turned her attention to the locker. Her presumed textbooks were there already. There was also a uniform there and it puzzled her. She read the slip of paper and noticed there was a mixed martial arts class she was enrolled in. She realized the uniform was for her to wear for the class and most likely this had all been curtesy of Mystique. She had mentioned something about helping her ease into this lifestyle. She read the slip of paper again and pulled out the appropriate book, tucking it into her backpack. She then closed the locker and secured the lock, turning around just in time to see a boy appear with a puff of smoke.

"What the—?!" She stumbled back, bumping against the lockers behind her and staring wide eyed at the blue haired boy.

He turned and stared at her, half a burger trapped in his mouth and hanging out. His eyes widened before he too fell back against the lockers behind him, pointing at her and shouting muffled words. "Mmmmhhhhmmphhhh! Phhhhhaaaaamphh! Ooooomphhh! Mhmhmhmp!"

"You... You just _teleported_ here..." Gabrielle whispered and glanced around, noticing there weren't students in the hallway. She then stared at him again, uttering the one word that made any of her kind's skin crawl. "**Mutant**."

His eyes widened more and he swallowed his burger, lunging towards her and flailing his arms over his head. "Shhh! Don't say such things so loud! Someone vill 'ere us!" He hissed and Gabrielle caught an accent amongst his words.

"Don't tell me that! You teleported here!" She silently screamed, it was a whisper but much louder than a whisper should be. She then saw this moment as she opportunity to gather information so she reached out to touch his face.

He immediately pushed himself away from her so Gabrielle didn't get to receive much information. The little she received had been more than enough though. He tentatively looked her up and down before he whispered. "You... You saw me port in here and you're... you're not frightened?"

"Frightened? No." She stated then quickly added. "Intrigued? Yes, very much so. I've never seen someone do that before." He gulped and looked ready to teleport away before she extended her hand to him again, hoping to gather more information out of him. "Wait, I can keep a secret. Please don't leave."

He looked very uneasy. His eyes reflected shame and guilt. She knew his appearance was a disguise. She'd felt fur when she touched his face and her touch confirmed what he really looked like. He was a mutant alright, in every sense of the word. A blue demon looking thing. His power was valuable for infiltration and espionage. He could be a very powerful ally if she played her cards right. She clasped her hands together and looked at him, giving him the best sincere and understanding look she could manage under these circumstances.

"My name is Gabrielle Beauchene. My parents were mutants. That's why I'm not scared of you."

"Does... does that mean that you're...?" He began to ask as he struggled to maintain eye contact with her.

"No, I'm not a mutant but I know that mutants can look very different from humans and do extraordinary things. I also know that humans fear what they do not understand, which is why I will keep your secret. No worries."

The school bell rang and he took that as his cue to teleport away. Gabrielle was left alone in the hallway, smiling to herself as she realized how easy it had been for her to gather information on two X-Men. She'd even managed to do this before her day officially begun. Scott Summers and Kurt Wagner, two mutants she'd learned so much about with a little touch. She began to make her way to her classroom, already knowing the school thanks to those two. Perhaps this school thing would be the best way for her to gather information from her enemies. As long as she played her role of a student, they were all sheep ready for slaughter.

_**To Be Continued**_

**Author's Note**

Well then, that got sort of dark pretty fast, huh? ^_^" I decided to split this chapter into a few parts because I feel that it'll turn out to be quite a bit of reading. Also, just a few quick notes, the dress Gabrielle is wearing is modeled after the dress Rogue wore at the end of the Spykecam episode, for those who were having trouble trying to figure out how it would look like. Gabrielle will be speaking in French a bit from now since she is actually French and she's posing as French. Frenchception much? The title for this chapter is due to the fact that I always pictured Scott as the sort of princely type while Kurt is in his shadow, a polar opposite to him but they see each other's perspective and respect it at times. It's also a reference to Mark Twain's novel by the same title. As always, feel free to pitch in ideas you'd like to see for future chapters or any feedback you might have.


	6. Evaluations

The girl wouldn't stop talking. Words tumbled out of her mouth almost as fast as Pietro could run. She didn't even seem to be breathing. She made so many gestures with her hands and the smile she'd given her was still there, even as she spoke. The high pitched tone made Gabrielle want to stab her eardrums and render herself deaf for life. She didn't want to be rude and tell her to shut up. She had to be polite and bear with this audial torture. What had she done to deserve this?

The girl who spoke at a rate of a hundred words per minute was Katherine Pryde. Gabrielle wouldn't have believed that this valley girl was a member of the X-Men if she hadn't seen it for herself. The girl had stated she preferred to be called Kitty but Gabrielle could think of several other things to call her, none of which were pleasant. The sound of the bell was a blessing and Gabrielle quickly excused herself. She gathered her things and practically ran to the door, walking out of the classroom and into the rush of students seeking to maneuver through a crowd and towards their destinations.

"Oh, won't this be fun?" Gabrielle grumbled under her breath and rolled her eyes.

She struggled to push through the crowd to reach her locker, quickly swapping her textbooks and closing it. She then pushed through the crowd again but ended up being swept away. She struggled and muttered curses but her efforts were in vain. She ended up bumping into a student and books showered them. They hit the floor and were attacked by falling books for a few seconds. Gabrielle hesitantly lowered her arms from her head and glanced at the redhead who was rubbing her head.

"Je suis désolé!" She quickly apologized and tilted her head to the side a bit. "You're not hurt, right?"

"No, no. I'm okay. One of the books just sort of hit me a bit too hard." The redhead replied before she tilted her head up.

Gabrielle immediately recognized who the redhead was and it was all thanks to Miss Chatterbox. This redhead was Jean Grey, the telepath of the X-Men. She had green eyes as well but lacked the vibrancy of Gabrielle's emerald eyes. It seemed that today she was meeting every X-Men and she couldn't complain. She was learning so much about them all especially when formalities made it that much easier. Never would have Gabrielle imagined that etiquette was this glorious. A telepath would pose a threat to her if she wasn't several steps ahead of her. There wouldn't be a way to read her mind, no matter how much she tried.

A fake smile spread across Gabrielle's lips as she extended her hand. "I'm sincerely sorry. My name is Gabrielle Beauchene and it's my first day here. The nerves must be making me into a major clutz."

"You're new?" The redhead repeated before she took Gabrielle's hand and shaking it. "I'm Jean Grey. Nice to meet you."

"Likewise." She replied and her fake smile only seemed more cheerful. "Here, let me help you with that." She began to pick up some of the books and formed a little stack before handing it to redhead.

Gabrielle stood up and held her arms out, offering to hold them so Jean could stand up. The redhead smiled and handed the younger girl her books. She fixed her backpack on her shoulders before she slowly stood up. She smiled as she took her books back, struggling to hold them all but refusing any more help. The first warning bell rang and Gabrielle merely glanced up at the ceiling before looking at the redhead again. Jean struggled to keep her books balanced but that fake smile wasn't fooling anyone. She was in desperate need of assistance and had too much pride to accept. She was already as annoying as Miss Chatterbox.

"Well, thank you, Gabrielle. See ya around!" She wobbled with the weights of her books as she maneuvered into the dwindling crowd.

"Well don't you make friends fast." He whispered into her ear, sending a chill down Gabrielle's spine.

Gabrielle spun around quickly but he was gone. She stood there, hands balled into fists and ears straining to hear him. The air began to settle before her as time caught up with his movements. There was a light squeak of sneakers coming to a stop and a breeze caressing her back. She exhaled a soft sigh and slowly turned around, casually leaning against the locker and training her emerald eyes on the sapphire ones that were sizing her up. She rolled her eyes to show her distaste for his actions but it only seemed to encourage him further.

"Don't you look striking today, _Gabs_~" Pietro cooed and sped away just in time to dodge Gabrielle's punch.

"Don't call me that." She stated flatly and crossed her arms over her chest again as she relaxed against the locker.

"Okay, fine, Gabrielle." He replied and then propped his hand on the locker beside her, leaning in close to twirl one of her strands of hair around his finger. "So tell me, whatcha doing buddying up to X-Geeks?"

She moved his hand away from her and closed her eyes, knowing that he wouldn't cease his annoying antics. "I'm gathering information. They don't know I'm a mutant or that I'm with you guys. I'd like to keep it that way until I figure out everything I need to know."

"Oh?" He asked as she piqued his interest. He was curious how she planned to do that so he reached out to toy with her strand of hair again. "And how do you plan to do that? Blast them with pretty lights?" He asked mockingly and his grin only infuriated her.

"Don't be stupid." She slapped his hand away and opened her eyes, emerald boring into sapphire with an intensity that caused Pietro to take a precautionary step back. "I plan to do this with etiquette. Now you and the boys better steer clear of my path or **I'll have to make you**."

Her words didn't allow Pietro to put in his input. She walked right past him, shoving him aside with her shoulder. He was too stunned by the look in her eyes that he'd seen that he was unable to snap a comeback. The second bell rang before she could make it to her class but she felt at ease. The day was going great and it wasn't even lunchtime yet. At this rate, she'd have everything by the end of the school day and could drop her act around the X-Men.

For her third class of the day, she had a class with one of the X-Men, the one known amongst his team as Spyke. Evan Daniels was the typical underachiever. She observed him throughout the class as she took notes on the lecture. He was slumped over his desk, playing with an eraser that he'd turned into a mini skateboard. He pretended his fingers were a skateboarder and took pride in his little tricks. The sight was quite pathetic. She didn't want to glimpse into his mind out of fear she might find something in common with the human porcupine. She pushed the thought aside as the teacher instructed the students to take a few minutes to get to know their classmates before the class was over.

She slowly rose from her chair and walked a few paces towards the dark skinned boy, standing by his desk. He didn't notice her so she had to clear her throat to catch his attention. He glanced up at her while his fingers toyed with the makeshift mini skateboard. She extended her hand to him but he didn't take it. He made no attempt to speak to her or move. Gabrielle wanted to punch the living day lights out of this kid but exercised self restraint. She smiled as she kept her hand extended to him.

"Hello, I'm Gabrielle Beauchene, the new student here." She stated and waited to see if he'd take her hand.

"Uh... Cool." He hesitantly took her hand, his warm fingers sending a shiver down her spine. "Name's Evan Daniels."

"Evan, huh? Well it's nice to meet you." She replied before they both retracted their hands from the handshake. It had been a very light touch since he was wearing fingerless gloves but she still managed to take in information.

Her brows furrowed as her mind processed the images and voices. She'd learned nothing useful. His mind was cluttered with skateboarding and it was all she received. She didn't learn anything about his role as an X-Men. If she wanted to know more about him, she'd have to touch him and focus on scanning for what she wanted to know. This one was going to require effort on her behalf. The teacher called everyone back to their seats so Gabrielle simply waved at Even over her shoulder. She sauntered over to her desk and sat there for role call. As soon as the last name was called, the bell rang to signal the end of class. She stretched her arms above her head and made her way to the gym as fast as she could. Her next class was mixed martial arts and she couldn't wait for this class. Finally something that wasn't boring or useless!

Ten minutes later, Gabrielle was standing in a line with other students, facing their instructor. This was her fourth class of the day and the last one before lunch. She was feeling really pumped up that she couldn't stop rocking back and forth on her heels. The black sweat pants and gray t-shirt with white sneakers really made her feel light. The uniform was lighter than she had thought when she unfolded it. She snuck glances at the students but paid them no mind as she knew that none of them were a mutant. She felt that her luck had run out and that this was going to be a class with no mutants until she saw them.

Kurt was wearing a white t-shirt and black sweatpants with gray sneakers. He seemed very uneasy and very close to his mutant friend. He hadn't seen Gabrielle but that was probably because he was furiously whispering to the mutant girl at his side. The girl at his side sporting the black sweatpants and halter top with gloves was Rogue, the mutant that Kitty feared. She didn't know anything else about the girl because it was something Kitty tried to push to the back of her mind and pretend it wasn't part of her life. This class would give her the best chance of extracting information from them both.

"Alright! We're going to have exhibition matches to see how much you all know about fighting. The match will be over when the opponent is on the floor. I will intervene if I think you're going too far, understood?" The instructor called out in a booming voice.

"Yes, sir!" They all replies in unison and went to sit on the bleachers as he called out names.

The first five matches were rather boring to watch. One had been more of slapping contest between two girls than a fight. A boy beat his opponent by simply shoving the charging boy to the floor. Another fight had been like a really bad game of patty-cake. Gabrielle sat with her head resting on her palms as she wondered if anyone in this class knew what they were doing. She sat up when her name was called and grinned as she heard her opponent would be Rogue. She stood up and jumped from bench to bench until she'd made it to the bottom. She took the center of the mat and propped her hands on her hips while Rogue seemed extremely hesitant to come down. It took her about thrice as long as Gabrielle to descend and when she took the floor, she was hugging her shoulders to herself.

"Aren't you going to assume a stance? Maybe at least try a defensive one?" Gabrielle asked, feeling insulted that this girl would consider her too weak to even make a move.

"Don't you worry 'bout mah stance." Rogue practically spat at her.

"Fine but don't cry when I beat you." She snapped back and smirked as she readied her fists at her sides, ready to take the offensive at the sound of the whistle.

The sound of the whistle was all Gabrielle needed to hear to lunge forward. She quickly closed their distance and swung two punches at Rogue, having alternated between her fists. Rogue simply dodged but made no attempt to put her arms up to defend herself. She waited a split second for a counterattack but none came. Gabrielle narrowed her eyes and lifted her right leg up, aiming a kick to Rogue's open abdomen. Rogue managed to catch her foot but that didn't stop her from skidding back a few feet. Rogue blinked in surprise and nervously glanced around, seeing that they were about five feet apart now. She eyed Gabrielle, wondering how this girl had such strength.

Gabrielle smiled at the confused girl and shrugged her shoulders. She then rushed forward again it this time Rogue charged in as well. They met halfway through and began throwing punches. They were toe to toe with their moves. When one punched, the other blocked. They leaned back to avoid multiple hits and stepped around the other's foot. They were incredibly close to each other, almost mirroring the other's move but even so, there had been no skin to skin contact. That is until Gabrielle tricked Rogue into thinking she was going to punch her and instead delivered a knee kick to her abdomen.

Rogue let out a choked gasp as the wind was knocked out of her and reached out for Gabrielle's face. Her pale fingers touched her cheek and Gabrielle's eyes widened as she felt a shock. She immediately jumped back, letting Rogue double over on to floor. Gabrielle inhaled sharp breaths of air and her knees trembled. Kurt rushed to Rogue to help her sit up and the instructor ordered him to take her to the nurse's office. Gabrielle couldn't process anything. Her mind was a blank. She felt weak and scared. She couldn't breathe so she reached up to clutch her neck, wanting to scream but the world was changing. She could no longer see anything. She was slipping into a terrifying world and there was no one there to save her. She collapsed on to the floor and somewhere in Russia, Klara was weeping for Svetlana.

_**To Be Continued**_

****

**Author's Note**

And with that note, Gabrielle has met every X-Men that is currently attending right now. Since this takes place right after Survival of the Fittest and before Shadowed Past, the only X-Men attending right now are Scott, Jean, Kitty, Evan, Kurt and Rogue. What do you guys think of this little fiasco? Let me know in the reviews! ^_^


	7. Shock

Emerald eyes fluttered open before Gabrielle immediately sat up. She groaned and clutched at her head. It felt heavy, like she was waking from a terrible hangover. She muttered a string of curses under her breath before she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned her head and was met with warm brown eyes. The woman eased Gabrielle back down on the bed and placed an ice pack on her forehead. Gabrielle slowly relaxed as the woman explained she was in the nurse's office after an accident in her class. She was informed she'd been struck in the head but Gabrielle wasn't sure that was what happened.

She remembered beating Rogue. She remembered the way she doubled over. She'd reached out to touch her face. She'd felt her pale fingers on her skin and in a split second and overwhelming terror ensued. _How could she have felt her fingers on her skin? Hadn't that mutant been wearing gloves? Did they rip? Did she take them off?_ Gabrielle couldn't remember but she distinctly felt her fingers upon her skin. It had been no more than a split second but that instance revealed enough for Gabrielle to fear their skins touching again. She couldn't recall what she'd seen but she was terrified to even consider trying to touch her again.

Touching her felt as if she was asking to be **killed**.

"Well, you seem better." The voice stated and Gabrielle flinched visibly before groaning softly.

"Hey, relax, it's just _me_." The voice stated again and Gabrielle squinted as she struggled to make out the figure.

"Lance?" He offered and chuckled as she tried to throw a pillow at him. "What? Not happy to see me?"

"How'd you know I was here...?" She mumbled and placed a hand on the ice pack to keep it in place.

"Rumors spread fast. The new Frenchie girl apparently kicked Rogue's ass and knocked her unconscious." He stated with a grin. "How'd that go?"

"I don't really remember... We were toe to toe then I kneed her. I knocked the wind out of her but she..." She frowned and turned to face him. "She's a mutant. She tried to do something to me."

His grin faltered and he became visibly concerned. "What did she do to you?"

"Nothing. I pushed her away before she could but I felt... like she was trying to take something from me..."

"She can take other mutants' abilities. They say even your memories, thoughts and shit. It's like she's taking away everything that makes you who you are."

Her emerald eyes widened and she felt herself hyperventilating. Lance yelled for the nurse and she came bustling in, shooing him away as she grabbed a paper bag. She coaxed Gabrielle into breathing in and out of it. She obliged with shaky hands and struggled to keep from crying. To think that Rogue had been so close to take such things from her made her fear that mutant more than death. After calming down, she'd been released but the problem still persisted.

Gabrielle's worst fear was alive and breathing. 

* * *

><p>"Gabrielle, <em>come on<em>, let me help you."

Lance had been pleading with Gabrielle for a good five minutes now but the French mutant was being quite stubborn. She had spent the better part of the day passed out in the nurse's office. She'd been released twenty minutes after school let out so she wouldn't be hassled by students. The Brotherhood had hung back like always but this time they planned to be productive. Lance had informed the others of Gabrielle's condition and they'd decided to help her but she wouldn't let them. Fred had offered to carry her to Lance's Jeep and she refused. Todd had offered to carry her bag and books but she'd refused as well. Pietro had offered to carry her all the way home and have her there within seconds and she'd immediately shot down his offer. She'd actually stated that would make her sick, giving only him a reason behind her refusal of his help. The only offer she hadn't shot down was Lance's offer to drive her home but she was having a hard time actually making her way to the car.

"Gabrielle, _please_, let me help you!" Lance pleaded as his patience had officially run out.

"I can make it on my own." She stubbornly stated as she stumbled left then right.

"Please... I wanna go home..." Todd whined from his seat, weakly thrashing about.

"Yeah. The house has food now." Fred stated and seemed ready to rock the Jeep.

"I said I can— _Uh oh_—" She mumbled as she started to fall face first into the ground. Her face was mere inches from smacking on to concrete and her teammates could only look on, knowing they'd been unable to catch her in time.

A swift breeze alerted everyone to his presence and the arms wrapped around her waist were enough for her to know it was in fact him.

"I tell ya, man, the girls can't help falling when they know I'm around." Pietro declared and smirked.

Gabrielle inhaled a deep breath as her hair messily hung over her face, thankful it was long enough to hide her flustered expression. She was too flustered to make any remarks of how idiotic his words were so she merely thrashed her arms around, earning another remark from Pietro.

"See? My presence is making her desperate for me to notice her."

Her small hands clenched into fists and shook angrily before she whipped her head around to glare at him. "That's not even close, you jerk!"

"It's okay to be in love with me, Gabrielle."

"What—?!"

"_Ooooooooh_~" Todd called out from somewhere in the backseat of the Jeep.

"He's at it again." Fred declared and shook his head, knowing that Gabrielle and Pietro would soon ensue their bickering.

"_Guys_..." Lance groaned as he threw his arms up in surrender and walked to the Jeep.

"Don't worry, Lance. We're going home." Pietro declared as he carried Gabrielle as if she were a sack of potatoes.

"I swear I'm going to totally knock you out." She mumbled under her breath as she hung around his arms, feeling like she was a rag doll.

Pietro seated Gabrielle in the backseat with Todd and slid in beside her. He then wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to him. She would've objected but she still felt exhausted. He grinned when he noticed she didn't pull away or make anymore remakes. Lance glanced at them and raised a curious brow, wondering if she was feeling okay. Todd was slumped at Gabrielle's left, groaning about being hungry. Fred happily piped in that he was hungry as well. Lance's hands tightened around the wheel as everyone decided to voice their hunger like children. Lance drove for ten minutes before he lost it and slammed on the brakes, parking alongside the road and turning to glare at them all.

"Enough! How am I supposed to drive when you all won't shut up?!"

"Maybe... Feed us?" Todd asked hesitantly and flinched at Lance's overpowering glare.

"Come on, Lance, please?" Gabrielle whined softly and fumbled around through her bag until she pulled out a small silver wallet. "I'll pay."

Gabrielle's offer to pay was the only incentive Lance needed to get rid of their whining and earn a win for himself. Lance didn't want to warn Gabrielle that her wallet would be cleaned out by Fred alone. It was payback for her participating in the whining with the others. Ten minutes later, they were parked in the parking lot of an all you can eat buffet. Fred was ecstatic and Todd was delighted that his stench repelled people from sitting anywhere near them. Gabrielle simply sprayed Febreeze around their table and showered Todd with it a bit so she could enjoy the food. Customers couldn't help but look at them, scrutinizing their every move but they didn't care. They were all eating to their hearts' content and making small chat.

Fred devoured everything that came his way sloppily so he'd settled himself in a table alone. Todd had been kicked to sit at a table alone as well because his scent ruined the scent of the food. He'd whined but Lance and Pietro had threatened to best him if he refused. Lance distractedly poked at his food as he ate, uncomfortable with all the staring and immersed in his thoughts about a certain X-Men he fancied. Pietro actually took his time to eat but only at Gabrielle's insistence that they'd seem normal, lest he wanted to be the reason they got kicked out of there. He kept stealing glances at Gabrielle, wondering why she seemed to be mindful of her table manners. She took small spoonfuls or forkfuls of food and slowly chewed. She'd dab at her lips with her napkin and slowly sipped her coke. The staring became too much so Gabrielle turned and poked Pietro's cheek with her fork, narrowing her eyes.

"Stop staring at me."

"How can I resist when you're so beautiful?" He asked as he flashed her a charming smile.

"Fuck, **seriously**, Pietro?" Lance stood up and took his plate with him to another table, not wanting to be near the speedster when he was trying to lay his charm on the only girl to date to reject him.

"Pietro, when are you going to take the hint? I'm **not** into you." She declared and exhaled a heavy sigh before she chewed another forkful of pasta.

"Soon as you admit that you've got it for me, which is why you keep trying to shoot me down." He leaned closer to her and waggled his brows.

She turned a little and looked at him, slapping him with her spoon. He didn't even seem fazed by this, which she found unsettling. "Look, why would I be interested in you?"

He smirked and began to list his reasons by holding an additional finger for every one he considered to be a reason she should be interested. "I'm charming. Fastest guy alive. Handsome as they come. Pretty damned toned for a guy my age. Funny. Know how to show ya a good time. Irresistible. Always saving your fine a—"

Gabrielle shoved a biscuit into the speedster's open mouth to keep him from finishing his last statement and rolled her eyes. "You're so full of yourself."

Pietro struggled to make a rather lewd remark but Gabrielle found herself unable to silence him because her fingers had grazed his skin at just the right moment for her to hear it echo in his thoughts. Her cheeks turned scarlet and her emerald eyes widened in shock at the remark she'd heard in his mind. She turned to face him completely and slapped him, mentally cursing as this only caused her to read more of his thoughts. She also caught a glimpse of the visual for the remark, causing her to shove him out of the booth. She stood up and made sure to walk over him as she left, slapping a few bucks down on the table as a tip for whatever unfortunate waiter or waitress would have to deal with Pietro.

"Yo, Gabrielle, where ya goin'?" Todd called out as he saw her make her way to the exit.

"Home." She stated and walked up to Lance, slamming her hands on his table. "Take me home."

"Whoa— Watch i—!" Lance began to cry out before he stopped, blinking before taking in Gabrielle's flustered appearance. "Whoa, Gabrielle, are you—?"

"**Now**, Lance!" She demanded and slapped her hands on the table, visibly shaking as she found herself unable to cope with all the lewd images in her head from Pietro's mind.

"Okay, okay! We're going!" He cried out and stumbled out of the booth as she began to drag him behind her.

Lance kept crying out for her to slow down. She wouldn't hear any of it. She didn't want to stop until they were in the car. They reached the car and she practically barked at him to speed away before they even entered the Jeep. She climbed into the passenger seat beside him and crossed her arms over her chest. Lance climbed in and gave her a final glance before he started his precious baby and started to drive away. Pietro sped up to their side and tried to climb in but it was as if he hit an invisible wall. He stopped running at full speed and simply plopped on to the floor beside the Jeep. Lance blinked and eyed Gabrielle but she only glared at Pietro and ordered Lance to take her home. Lance was a tough guy but even he didn't feel like messing with the fuming female at his side. He obliged and drove her home in silence until Gabrielle blurted out Pietro's ideas.

"Pietro wants to sleep with me!"

"Huh?" He blinked and gave her a look before focusing on the road again. "Yeah, so? What else is new?"

"Lance! Pietro wants to... _sleep_ with me!" Gabrielle choked out and shuddered at the vivid imagery she had seen.

"Gabrielle, he's made that pretty obvious." He stated and cut off some idiot who was driving way below the speed limit. "Why do you say that like it surprises you?"

"Because it does!"

"Hmmm... Not really." He stated bluntly and began to drive with one hand as he shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "Pietro's a big flirt. Talks a lot of game. It's not a shock that he'd want to sleep with someone, not even you. Hell, especially _not_ you. Never seen him try so hard to get a girl before. Must be you shooting him down that's fueling his ego."

She frowned and scrunched up her nose a bit as she tried to process Lance's words. "So you're saying... If I stop rejecting him and such, he'll give up and **not** want to sleep with me?"

"Yeah probably. If it's his ego talking like always, he'll lose interest when you cave in." He slowed down as they came to a red light. He turned to look at her for a few seconds before focusing back on the traffic light. "Where'd this come from anyways? Did he tell you that he wanted to sleep with you?"

Her cheeks burned scarlet and she punched Lance's arm, causing then to swerve a bit. He shot her a look but she only glared at him with scarlet cheeks. "That's none of your business!"

He couldn't help but smirk at her words. "Ah... So he did. That's why you wanted to leave."

"Silence!" She shouted and crossed her arms tightly over her chest.

"He had you so flustered with that and you couldn't help it. That's why you told me to bring you home."

"Lance! I'm warning you!"

"Well, well, what do you know? Our little French princess has a **weakness**. And that weakness is _Pietro Maximoff_."

"**Aaaaaauuuugh**!" Gabrielle cried out and slumped down in her seat, mentally cursing for telling Lance about her problem.

Lance couldn't help but laugh and mock poor Gabrielle's romantic misfortune for the rest of the car ride home. 

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><p><span><strong>Author's Note<strong>

I apologize for the late update. Working on posting an update schedule on my profile so you'll know when to expect an update for the story. Updates will be coming in pretty slow for a while but that doesn't mean I'm not working on them! As always, I'd appreciate it if you left a review so I know how my readers feel about the story. Any feedback helps with the progress of the story!


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